Fernando Alonso laments ‘pure bad luck’ for Aston Martin in Imola despite upgrades being ‘a step forward’

Fernando Alonso was left to rue ‘pure bad luck’ in Imola after tumbling down the order from his fifth-placed start to finish the race in 11th, despite his Aston Martin upgrades making the car look competitive for the first time this season.

Those upgrades combined with the tactical astuteness to save an extra set of medium tyres for Qualifying saw both Aston Martins make Q3 for the first time this season. Alonso started fifth, and ran there in the early stages of the race.

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With Lance Stroll a few places behind, the team looked on for a double score – but after pitting early, their race unravelled when many got a cheap pit stop under the subsequent Virtual Safety Car.

Worse was to come, the late Safety Car gifting the opportunity for half the field to fit fresh tyres again, at a point when Aston martin had no realistic compounds left to use. That left the Spaniard to make a balanced judgement of how his day unfolded.